Kevin Patrick for House of Delegates

Life | Liberty | Property
18 Constitutional Questions

From the January newsletter of the National Center for Constitutional Studies, as presented by Earl Taylor, Jr.:
SOURCE: http://www.nccs.net/newsletter/jan10nl.html

Philosophy is more important than issues

If voters can be sure they are electing people with the correct philosophy of government, then they can feel safer that no matter what the issue is that comes along, the decision about that issue will probably be made based on correct principles and not on current opinions. Issues will come and go. Correct principles do not come and go. To paraphrase one man's counsel on how best to lead: Teach people correct principles and let them govern themselves. As Americans, the time for insisting that our candidates are strong believers in correct principles of government is now.

The following are a few of the questions [which some] twelfth grade students have asked candidates who are running for public office. These young people can tell pretty quickly what kind of public officials they will make just by their answers.

Questionnaire

Question 1. What is the concept of unalienable rights as mentioned by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence?
Unalienable rights are rights which are not able to be taken away, changed, nor transffered.  These are our natural rights, or god-given rights.  They exist independently of government and constitutions.  They are worth fighting for.

Question 2. Explain your feeling about this statement: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
The meaning behind this statement is that without ethics and an internal moral compass; and the willingness to protect our rights; no piece of paper can stop their usurpation.


Question 3. As a public official, you will be required to take an oath to uphold and preserve the Constitution of the United States. When is the last time you undertook a serious study of the Constitution and can you identify one or two areas where you feel the Constitution is being violated today?
I have studied the Constitutions for the United States and West Virginia carefully.  I carry a copy of the US Constitution in my pocket with me.  The Constitution is being violated on nearly every front.  Nearly every Article of the Bill of Rights is being violated.

Question 4. What is the proper role of government?
The proper role of government is to protect the individual rights of the Citizens which constitute it.  Anything else is an usurpation.  Our Constitution gives 19 things for Congress to do.  No more, no less.  No transferring of responsibility and privileges.

Question 5. If you were elected to Congress, what is the first thing you should do, after reading a bill, in deciding on how to vote on the bill?
I would open up my copy of the Constitution and see if We, the People, have granted Congress the authority to do what the Bill proposes.  If it does not explicitly state it in Article 1, Section 8: then I would vote NO.

Question 6. What do you understand by the general welfare clause in the Constitution? Does it give Congress additional authority?
The "General Welfare Clause"  says that the gov't will promote not 'provide for' the general welfare not 'specific welfare.'  This means that Congress must do due diligence to protect the rights of the individual.  It grants no new powers to government.

Question 7. What do you understand is the correct meaning of the necessary and proper clause, or the elastic clause as it is sometimes called, found at the end of Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution? Does this give additional power to Congress?
It, too, grants no new powers to Congress.  It only strengthens Article 1, Section 8.

Question 8. The specific powers of state or local officials are not as clearly itemized in state constitutions or local city charters as they are in the Federal Constitution for Federal officials. If you are elected to a state or local office, what will be your guidelines in making decisions as to what you should or should not do in your office?
"Government is best which governs least."  I believe Liberty is the best policy; and the freedom of the individual would be my guide in this respect.

Question 9. What are the specific areas of responsibility of the President of the United States as listed in the Constitution?
The President's duties are listed in Article 2 of the US Constitution.  They include: Being the chief diplomat, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy, provide for the calling forth of the Militia of the Several States to Federal Service; and to grant reprieves and pardons.. 

Question 10. Does the Constitution give the President power to regulate or bailout industries, to commit troops to war, to give foreign aid, to make laws by executive orders, to decide who gets Federal aid and who does not, to chisel away at American sovereignty by making executive agreements with foreign entities, or to lock up the natural resources of the nation from being enjoyed by the people?
No.  The President can move troops about after a lawful Declaration of War from Congress, or in the immediate defense of our home shores.

Questions 11. The Federal courts seem to be involved in almost every aspect of American life. Are there any restrictions in the Constitution concerning the kinds of cases the Federal courts can accept?
Article 3 lists very specific restrictions of the Federal Judiciary.  Everything else should be left to the States.

Question 12. Why has the Supreme Court dealt with so many matters outside its Constitutional jurisdiction?
Because We, the People have not stopped them.  Those in power always seek to control more and more.  It is our responsibility to keep that from happening, or to rectify the situation.

Question 13. In what way has the Commerce Clause been distorted to give the Federal Government unconstitutional powers?
The Commerce Clause has been so abused to become ridiculous.  It has been used to control many aspects of the Citizens' lives; such as: in relation to insurance, health care, firearms, and numerous other instances.

Question 14. Has Congress fulfilled its constitutional responsibility to structure and operate a constitutional monetary system and what would you do to make improvements in the system?
The Constitution states that only gold and silver should be used as money, and Congress has the value to coin (i.e. not print) money and regulate its value.  Congress does not have authority to give this responsibility to a third party, such as a privately owned banking cartel called "The Federal Reserve."  The current system is entirely unconstitutional.

Question 15. Nearly every public official is faced with questions of public debt. What is your opinion of using debt and how should it be paid off?
Jefferson said that debt should be paid off in the generation which accrued it.  Our government is doing the opposite, saddling our future children and grandchildren with so much debt they will be little more than wage slaves to foreign bodies.  It's unconscionable.

Question 16. What kind of taxes are the best for government to use to support its proper functions?
Indirect taxes are what was preferred by the founders (as evidenced by no income tax for the first 100 years of our country's history.)  The Supreme Court ruled that the 16th Amendment gave the Federal Government no new powers of taxation.  Therefore: the income tax on wages is unconstitutional; not even mentioning that you are forced under penalty of perjury to testify against yourself every year by the IRS. 

Question 17. What authority does the Federal Government have to occupy land within a state?
Only for a few purposes (such as courthouses and arsenals, others) and only with the consent of the State Legislatures.  There is no authority for huge tracts of lands such as National Forests, etc.

Question 18. If elected, how will you use your office to help restore true constitutional government to our land once again?
I will seek to educate my fellows, to repeal unlawful statutes, to revitalize the Constitutional Militias of the Several States, and to protect the rights of the individual.